- Lucy Cardenas and Bill Coker
- Red Iguana
- Salt Lake City
Iconic family-owned Mexican restaurants serving Salt Lake City for more than 56 years
The Cardenas family has had the pleasure of serving its dedicated patrons in the Salt Lake Valley since 1965 with the Casa Grande and Red Iguana restaurants. The Casa Grande was the first restaurant they opened and operated for 20 years before opening Red Iguana.
Ramon Sr. and Maria Cardenas immigrated from Mexico; Ramon was born in San Luis Potosi and Marie in Chihuahua. Together, they shared a passion for Mexican cuisine and created recipes and dishes proudly served as delicious expressions of their cultural background. The first Red Iguana was opened in 1985 but was destroyed in a fire a year later. It wasn’t easy for the Cardenas to reopen the location. But their hard work paid off with a very successful, televised grand reopening. Once again, customers lined the sidewalk to eat the delicious, authentic food.
The Cardenas created unique yet traditional Mexican recipes which are now passed on to Lucy Cardenas and her husband, Bill Coker, who are proudly continuing the family tradition. When Lucy was very young, she worked in the family business washing dishes and greeting customers. Her career in restaurant management took her outside of Utah but she returned in 2005 to assume leadership of Red Iguana after her mother and brother passed away. She and Coker have built the family business into one of Utah’s most recognized and awarded dining establishments, featured as a dining destination in articles and popular TV shows.
Upon notice of the Utah Small Business of the Year award, Lucy Cardenas told the SBA, “Receiving this SBA award has very special significance to us. It recognizes how much commitment two generations of the Cardenas family have made to our community over 56 years. It’s especially significant because my father, at 88 years old, is here to witness this honor.”
Cardenas and Coker utilized the SBA’s 504 loan program to add a second restaurant and later used a SBA’s 7(a)-guaranteed loan to double its capacity. While growing to meet soaring demand, they made sure to preserve the flavorful fare and friendly atmosphere the Cardenas family created in 1965 with their first restaurant in Salt Lake City. What once started with Roman and Marie Cardenas as a four-table restaurant is now Red Iguana, Red Iguana 2 and Taste of Red Iguana. The three restaurants — all within a mile and a half of each other — serve more than 750,000 people a year.
Lucy Cardenas said, “Running the Red Iguana, for me has always been about the people — our customers and our staff. It gives us great joy to know we still serve over 1,000 people a day and employ over 150 members of our community. Receiving SBA emergency funds during the pandemic was truly an honor and a gift because we have been able to stay in business, provide benefits to all the hard-working souls that stood by us and helped us feed our community during the pandemic. That makes us very proud. Thank you, SBA, for making this possible.”
During COVID-19, Red Iguana was forced to completely close indoor dining for 111 days. What worried Cardenas and Coker most was their concern for their employees. They pivoted overnight to curbside delivery for Red Iguana 2. Although they did have to let employees go, they stayed in touch and promised to bring them back as soon as they could. They held on to over 100 hourly employees with reduced rates and promised full back pay if relief arrived. Receiving SBA Paycheck Protection Program funds, they were able to keep their promise to restore full pay retroactively and brought back staff to their current 157 employees. Cardenas and Coker know that many challenges still lie ahead as the economy recovers from the pandemic, but they are committed to maintaining the Cardenas family legacy.
Coker said, “When Lucy and I purchased Red Iguana from her father in 2005, we realized our first priority was to protect and extend the legacy of the Cardenas family’s involvement and commitment to community. One of the secret sauces of its success is its moles. The other one is what we call our 'strategic partners,' the vendors without which, we could not run our business. Since 2010, the SBA has been our most strategic partner. Thank you.”
Carrying on the family tradition means not only providing authentic Mexican food but also being community-focused. Cardenas and Coker remain committed to the Rose Park neighborhood where two of their restaurants are located and where they reside. They serve on multiple community boards and support local schools, youth baseball teams and other worthy organizations on Salt Lake City’s West Side, where the famed restaurant is a source of pride.